Swinging door mechanism



Jane 28 1936. E. a... SHAFFER I SWINGING DOOR MECHANISM Filed June 6,1931 4 Sheets-Sheet l linventor item 11% Jam 28, l g E EF; ZMZQQUQ?SWINGING DOOR MECHANI SM Filed June 6', 1931 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 PatentedJan. 28, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 24 Claims.

This invention is a novel overhead swinging door mechanism particularlyadapted for use in garages and the like, in which a plurality of hingeddoor sections are movable as a unit from open to closed positions, andvice versa; the door carrying and actuating mechanism being adapted tobe installed in the ceiling of the garage. The present application is acontinuationin-part of my co-pending application Serial No. 391,445,filed September 9, 1929, and covers certain novel improvements in theapparatus and essential features of the mechanism.

The principal objects of my invention are to provide a unit as abovedescribed which will be easy to install and operate; which will bestable, strong, weatherproof, and will not bind during operationthereof; also a unit which will be completely housed within the garageor other enclosure in any and all positions of the doors; and which willrequire very little space for operation; which will not be affected byany twisting of the frame of the garage or other building; which willnot permit the doors to drag upon the floor while swinging; and whichwill permit one door section to be opened independently of the othersections; also to provide novel electric means for opening and closingthe door assembly.

I will explain the invention with reference to the accompanying drawingswhich illustrate one practical embodiment thereof to enable others toadopt and use the same; and will summarize in the claims the novelfeatures of construction, and novel combinations of parts, for whichprotection is desired.

In said drawings:-

Fig. 1 is a plan view looking upwardly at the base unit, at the compoundlever carrying the door assembly, and at the power operating means forthe assembly; the doors being shown in closed position in full lines,and in open position in dotted lines. Fig. 2 is a View similar to Fig. 1but showing the parts as they appear in partly opened position of thedoors. Fig. 3 is an enlarged section on the line 3--3, Fig. 1. Fig. 4 isa rear elevation of the lock for the door assembly. Fig. 5 is a sectionon the line 55, Fig. 3. Fig. 6 is a rear elevation of the door assemblyon the line 6-6, Fig. 1. Fig. '7 is an enlarged longitudinal sectionthrough the compound lever, base unit, and bracket connections whichadjustably support the door assembly. Fig. 8 is an enlarged longitudinalsection through the electric assembly operating carriage and track. Fig.9 is a transverse section through the electric carriage on the line 9-9,Fig. 8.

Fig. 10 is an enlarged detail. Fig. 11 is a top plan view partly insection of the means permitting independent opening of one of the sidedoors. Fig. 12 is a plan view, similar to Fig. 1, showing a modifiedform of the single entrance feature. Fig. 13 is an enlarged longitudinalsection through the compound lever showing modified connection of thelink, for the single ontrance door, to the toggle block. Fig. 14 is anenlarged plan view of the connections between the link and toggle block.Fig. 15 is a vertical section through the single entrance door and thelatch means for operating the single entrance feature. Fig. 16 is a planview of the single en trance door. Fig. 17 is a detail perspective ofthe latch casing.

As shown, my invention consists of a preformed base unit adapted to besecured to the rafters or ceiling R of a garage or the like opposite thedoor opening S, said base unit carrying a compound lever with bracketsvertically adjustably supporting the middle door section B of the hingeddoor assembly A, B, C, the door sections A' and C being hingedrespectively to the opposite side edges of the middle section B.

In place of the relatively thick wooden base plate shown in myco-pending application Serial No. 391,445 I prefer to use a fabricatedpreformed metallic base unit which when installed against the undersideof the rafters or ceiling will 00- cupy, with its related or associatedparts, only about five or six inches of ceiling depth. Said base unit,while supporting the carriage and counterbalance lever for said doorassembly, also controls the swing, during the opening and closingmovements, of the end door sections A and C, and for this purpose theedge of plate I adjacent opening S has a compound curvature consistingof an arcuate channel portion la concentric with the pivot bolt of thecompound lever (hereinafter described), the arcuate channel la embracingthe full width of middle door section B when in fully closed position(full lines, Fig. 1) and the full width of the door B when in fully openposition (dotted lines, Fig. l) to permit operation of the carriage 2aof middle door section B through an arc of slightly more than 90degrees.

Radially disposed bars lb connect the upper leg of the channel Ia with acenter bearing Io (Fig. 7) for pivot bolt 2b. Substantially tangent tothe ends of the channel portion la but spaced therefrom are framemembers Id forming together a right angle having its heel disposed at apoint opposite the center of channel la, said frames Id extending beyondthe ends of the channel I a a' distance corresponding with the positionof outer doors in fully opened or closed positions, or with the outertips of the reverse curve portions Id of the guide plate shown in myce-pending application, Serial No. 391,445.

Secured to each end of arcuate channel la is a reverse curved guideplate le adapted to align doors A and C edgewise with door B when ineither open or closed positions, doors A and (3 being provided withrollers A and C respectively adapted to engage the guides lo and beingdirected thereagainst by means of guide plates If secured in the bosomof frame Id and disposed substantially parallel with guide plates 1 e toform channel guideways for the rollers A and C.

' Shield plates lg are applied over the upper edges of the guide platesle, I f and frames Id to give strength to the structure and to promotesmooth and unhindered movement of the guide rollers A, C throughouttheir reverse curve travel.

Preferably spring tension adjustments are provided for the outer ends ofthe guide plates le so that the outer ends of the guide plates le mayyieldably hold the end doors, when in closed position, tightly againstthe door jambs, for the purpose of rendering same weatherproof. Asshownin Figs. 1 and 2 the spring adjustments consist of threaded rods inextending from the frame members lo, through the guide plates le, withnuts on the outer ends of the rods, and springs I51 interposed betweenthe nuts and the backs of plates is. By adjusting the nuts the springtensions may be varied.

The compound lever for supporting the door comprises an inner frameconsisting of parallel members 2 connected together at their inner endsby ,a pivot block 20 receiving the pivot bolt 2b. The outer ends offrame members 2 are connected directly to the carriage 2a. of middledoor B, which carriage 2a is provided with rollers 2d adapted to,

traverse the arcuate channel la of the base unit as the carriage 2a isswung around by frame 2 from open to closed position.

Depending from the center of carriage 2c is a vertically disposedbracket 3 lying adjacent the rear face of middle door B. The bracket 3being carried by the carriage 2a and frame 2 will rotate therewith in afixed horizontal plane. Bracket 3 is provided with spaced perforatedears 3a, 3b carrying a vertically disposed hinge rod 3'0. Rod 30 alsopasses through perforated ears 4a, 4b of a bracket 4 fixed upon the rearface of door B whereby door B may readily pivot on said bracket 3 duringthe opening and closing movement of the door. The ears Ea, 4b of thebracket 4 are embraced by the ears 3a, 3b of bracket 3 (see Fig. '7) andunder the lower ear 4b is a stirrup- 5 for vertically adjusting door Bwith respect to the carriage 2a, the upper ends of stirrup 5 beingconnected with the counterbalanced outer frame 6 of the compound lever.

Bracket 3 is preferably L-shaped with the vertical leg carrying thepivot bolt 30. The horizontal leg is provided with an elongated slot 301at its outer end adapted to be engaged by a bolt 2q carried by a clip 21on frame 2 whereby the bracket 3 maybe moved on the frame 2 towards oraway from the door B, to adjust the bracket when carrying the doors tosuit the door jarnbs while permitting free opening and closing movementof the doors. The heel end of the bracket 3 is slidably supported by astrap 2s on the under side of carriage 2a. The legs of bracket 3 arepreferably braced by a diagonal strut 3) connecting the legs; and whenadjusted the vertical leg of bracket 3 carrying rod 30 is bracedlaterally by a brace 21) depending from the carriage 2a and bolted as at2w to the leg of bracket 3 Brace 222 is preferably sufficiently flexibleto permit adjustment of bracket 2d axially of frame 2.

In my co-pending application Ser. No. 391,445, the upper rails on theouter faces of doors B and C have to be made arcuate so as to permit theassembly to swing from front to side'positions past the door frame S,this being due to the fact that the middle door B in that case wasrigidly bracketed to the carriage 2a. (instead of being pivoted withrespect thereto as in the present application) and starting to open thedoors the doors B and C would necessarily swivel so that one cornerwould project beyond the normal plane of the elosed doors. The presentarrangement however in which the door B is pivoted with re spect tocarriage 2a has a decided advantage in that it permits the angularity ofdoor B to change with respect to that of the carriage 2a or the axis offrame 2 resulting in a flatter sweep in traversing the reverse curvedportions of the base unit by the rollers on end doors A and C. Also inthe present 'pivotally connected arrangement the door B has no tendencyto initially swivel upon commencement of the opening movement.

The compound lever also includes an outer counterbalancing framecomprising a pair of parallel spaced members 6 suitably connectedtogether and pivoted for vertical movement as at 3a to extensions 2p ofthe pivot block. 20 of the frame 2 whereby frame 5 swings laterally withframe 2 as the latter is swung, and at the same time may pivotvertically with respect to frame 2. The forward ends of the framemembers 6 are pivotally connected to the upper ends of the legs of thestirrup 5 which vertically adjusts the bracket 4 on the back of door Bwith respect to the fixed bracket 3 carried by carriage 2d. The rear endof frame 6 extends beyond the pivot block 20 andcarries acounterbalancing weight ED for offsetting the combined weights of thedoor sections A, B, C, so that the doors A, B C may be readily raisedand lowered with respect to the garage floor level in order to overcomethe undesirable feature of drag which is common to most garage doors,and in order to lift the doors above their respective floor blocks A2.B2, C2

(Figs. 6 and 7) when opening and closing the doors. The position ofweight to may be made adjustable. The pivot 6a for frame 3 is preferablydisposed considerably in advance of the pivot bolt 21) of frame 2 so asto permit use of a counterbalance 6b of minimum weight, and the pivotpoint 6a may be made adjustable.

When the door assembly is in closed and locked position, the doors areheld against inward thrust at their lower ends by'fioor blocks A2, B2,C2 (Figs. 6 '7) disposed behind each of the doors, but it is necessaryas above stated to raise the door assembly above the tops of the saidfloor blocks A2, B2, C2, in opening and closing the door assembly; andat the rear end of frame 6 is mounted a roller l adapted to engage theunderside of the ceiling R, the ceiling having an opening R therein inway of the roller i when the doors are closed so as to permit the lowerends of the doors A, B, C, to drop upon the garage floor in front of thefloor blocks A2, B2, C2 when the assembly is in closed position wherebythe lower ends or" the doors will be held tightly against the doorlambs. When however the frame 6 starts to swing'laterally the roller 1which would be made of sufiicient diameter will engage the underside ofceiling R and thereby raise the doors A, B, C, above the floor blocksand holding the assembly thus raised during swinging of the assemblyfrom closed position.

In connection with the end doors A and C I provide toggle links 3respectively pivoted on a toggle block 8a. slidably mounted in guideslot 62c carried by the frame 6 in rear of pivot block 20 of frame 2,and the outer ends of the links 6 are respectively connected with thebrackets of rollers A and C, whereby as the door assembly is swung fromclosed to open positions the links 8 will be moved simultaneously andcause the inward or outward motion of one door A or C to be impartedthrough the toggle action to the other door C or A. Referring to Fig. 1it will be seen that the outer end of the reverse curved guide le of thebase unit is engaged by the roller C on door C while the roller A ofdoor A is entirely disengaged. Now as the assembly is swung from closedto open position (shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1) the roller C willnecessarily follow its related reverse curve channel (between guides Ie,If) towards the arcuate channel la, and the toggle link 8 of door C willshift toggle block 8a rearwardly on frame 6 causing the door A (throughthe medium of its toggle link 8) to swing through the substantially sameangle as the door C, so that while the door assembly is being swung toopen position when the roller C reaches the end of its reverse curvechannel (between guides le, If) the roller A of door A will have enteredinto its related reverse curve channel, and door C during the remainderof the opening movement of the assembly will be controlled by and withthe movement of door A. Hence when fully swung around to open positionall three doors A, B, C, will again be aligned along the side Wall ofthe garage as shown in dotted lines in Fig. l.

I provide a spring 88 connecting the toggle block 8a with the outer endof the horizontal leg of bracket 3 (or with any other .fixed part of thecompound lever) for tending to hold the doors A, C, fully extended intothe plane of middle door B, and thereby yieldably maintaining aflattening effect of the door assembly throughout the entire opening andclosing movements.

I also provide means whereby one of the end door sections may be openedindependently of the other doors for use as a single entrance. If one ofthe side doors such as C is to be used as a single entrance door, itsfloor block A2 would necessarily be hinged or yieldably mounted. Asdescribed in my co-pending application Ser. No. 391,445 said meanspreferably comprises a bar 9 (Figs. 1 and 11) adapted to normallyoverlie the top of door C, the inner end of bar 9 being pivotallysecured as at Go to the top of door B. The outer end of bar 6a carriesan enlargement 9b upon which the guide roller C of door C is journaled,and the toggle link 8 of door C is pivoted as at to portion 9b. Theenlargement 9b of bar 9 is also provided with an arcuate portion 9dadapted to slidably engage the top of door C to support the outerenlarged end of bar 9 carrying roller C when door C is opened asindicated in dotted lines, Fig. 11, regardless of the position of doorC. Hence the position of roller C will remain at all times the same asthough the roller C were actually carried by door C with no provisionfor independently opening door C. A notch 9e formed in plate 91) isadapted to receive a latch 91 (Fig. 6) operated by a knob 99 placed atusual height on door C said knob being connected by a link 9h to bellcrank 9k the vertical arm of which extends upwardly and forms the latch91 which engages notch 96. A spring Sm normally maintains latch 9fengaged with its notch. Door C may thus be freely opened and closedwithout affecting the position of its roller C; and door C may be lockedin normal position by latch 9f engaging notch Be.

A modification of the single entrance feature is shown in Figs. 12-17inclusive in which the toggle link 8 for the door A is connected as inFig. 1 to the toggle bolt 81]., but the bracket C for door C isidentical with the bracket A of door A, and toggle link 8 of door Cextends beyond the toggle bolt 8a, and passes through a guide 8gpivotally mounted on toggle bolt 8a (Fig. 13). Guide 89 preferablycomprises a metallic plate having a perforation at its center forengagement by the bolt 8a, the ends of the plate being flanged down-iwardly and slotted for the passage of link 8 of door C. Link 8 isnormally locked to guide 8g by means of a latch 8h of bell-crank shapepivoted on link 8 and urged by spring 81' into position to maintain thenotched leg of lever Sit in engagement with the side edge of one flangeof guide 89 so as to prevent link 8 from moving axially of guide 89. Astop 87' on link 8 limits the swinging movement of lever 8h, and theportion of lever 871. in advance of the notch is beveled as at 87a topermit ready engagement of the lever 8h with the guide when approachingthe latter. Lever 8h is swung out of engagement with guide 89' by meansof a cord 8m extending from lever 871. and running substantiallyparallel with link 8 toward door C, said cord passing downwardly over apulley 8n carried by the inner end of link 8, and extending to a latchon the door C. The latch (Fig. 15) comprises a latch lever 56 connectedwith the cord 8m and pivoted in a plate 51 (Fig. 17) inset flush withface of door C, the loop end of the lever 50 only projecting through theopening in the door plate 5| A small spring 52 connects the top of latchlever 59 to the plate 5| to normally maintain the lever in inoperativeposition and returns the lever 50 to normal position when released. Thefree end of lever 59 may be padlocked (Fig. 15) to an eye 52 on plate5|. When not padlocked, in order to open the single entrance door C(with floor block C2 turned back) latch lever 50 is pulled out, drawingcord 8m down releasing the trip dog 8h from engagement with guide 8gpermitting door C to freely swing open. The dog 8h is designed toautomatically look when door C is returned to closed position.

I also provide electrical means, somewhat similar to that shown in myco-pending application Ser. No. 391,445, for power operating the unit,the same being illustrated in Figs. 1, 8, 9 and 10. The electrical meansis bracketed in place under rafters or ceiling R. in rear of andsubstantially normal to the counterbalancing frame of the compound leverwhen the doors are in closed position; same preferably comprising a pairof side rails Ii carrying chain sprockets II and I2 journaled adjacentthe ends of the rails. One sprocket such as I I may be mounted inadjustable bearings I la. The other sprocket may be driven by a motorcontrolled by a master switch. Around the sprockets ll, 12 runs a chain13 and I provide plates [4 engaging the inner faces of the runs of chain53 respectively to prevent sagging thereof. One of the links of thechain l3 carries a lug I3a adapted to engage either the upper trip [52)or the lower trip 15a of a carriage l5 mounted to roll upon side railsH] which form the track (Fig. 10) with a spring clip l5e mounted betweenthe roller and the heel of the L but spaced from a the roller. The otherleg of the arm extends to the side of the carriage I5 into position tostrike against an abutment IE or Hug (Fig. 1). When making contact lug13a forces past the spring clip Se and lies between the clip I5e androller' [5a or IE?) thereby positively controlling the movement of thecarriage until the release is made at the end of travel of the carriageby side arms l5d striking against the tripping block 15 or I 5y providedat the end of the carriage travel, thereby swinging the roller |5a or[5b to one 'side and allowing the lug l3a to pass.

Carriage It? carries a fixed arm 15c connected by a relatively long linkIt to one arm of a bell crank l1 pivoted as at l'la adjacent the roller1 on a clip l'lb secured to the end of frame 6 of compound lever (seeFig. 3) the other arm of bell crank lever 51 carrying a traveler rollerl'lc operating against the underside of the ceiling R and disposed toroll in advance of roller '5 so that a push by link it will pivot bellcrank I? on, its traveler wheel l'ic which being held by the curvedbracket l'ld acts as a fulcrum for bell crank lever I! to pull the rearend of frame 6 down so that roller 7 may be readily rolled past theopening R and the pull down of the frame lifts the door assembly at theopposite end of the frame 6 and when both the traveler I10 and rollerwheel 7 have engaged the underside of ceiling R the door assembly willbe maintained in raised position while being swung to open position.

A suitable trip-dog i8 is used to normally look the bell crank lever llin raised position, said trip dog l8 being pivoted on bracket ill) andhaving one endextending beyond the bracket and its other end normallyengaging a ratchet tooth He on the lever El and being held in suchengagement by a spring IBM. In Fig. 3, the parts are shown in positionready to swing at the ceiling level the trip dog l8 holding the travelerWheel He and roller 1 in bearing relation to the ceiling R throughoutthe opening and closing movement of the doors until the doors arebrought again into closed position, when the trip dog I8 is released bystriking the abutment l9, and the pull of the electric carriage 15through link 46 plus the weight of the door assembly drops the doorassembly into lowered position.

A lifting element is provided within the opening R of the ceiling andadapted to be erigaged by the roller 1, when opposite said opening R.The element consists of a bearing bar 26 lying in the plane of the lowerface of ceiling R and havingan offset extension 28a hinged as at 2% tothe top of ceiling R, the outer end of bar 2E3 being flanged downwardlyas at 25c tangent mounted on bar 2t above the approximate center ofroller 7. Hinge plate 2? is adjustable in or out to increase or decreasethe leverage of the downward thrust. In the closing movement of the doorassembly roller 1 rolls off the ceiling onto the bearing bar 25!. Asthe'bearing'bar 20 is raised by weight of the door assembly, assisted bythe manual or mechanical means, the spring tension remains about thesame up to a'certain point of the upward movement when it approaches apoint where the spring tension would be overcome. A'member 28 fixed onthe portion 260 of bar 253 carries a small wheel or roller 28a at itsupper end adapted to contact with hook rod 22 as the point of tensionovercoming is reached so as to just hold the door assembly in closeddown position. The opening of the door is by applying manual ormechanical lift at the door assembly or counterbalanced end of the lever6 just sufiicient to break the hold at the lifting element.

Above the path of travel of carriage I 5 is a bar 29 upon which ismounted a three way switch 33 having its trigger engaged with a slidebar 3| mounted in bearings parallel with the side frames I0. Bar 3! isprovided with stops 31a and Slb mounted adjacent the ends thereofadapted to engage trips I51: carried by the carriage l5. When carriageI5 has drawn the doors A, B, C, into open position and is at the end ofits specified travel, trip l5a: engages the stop 3la on reversing rod3!. The spring tension of trip 3| (1 is sufiicient to slide the rod 3!to shift the contacts of switch as. Adjustment of the stops 3! a and 3|b on reversing rod 3| will give the desired length of travel forcarriage J5.

In operation, upon throwing the switch for opening movement the motorwill set chain !3 in motion and lug iiia will engage pawl roller I 5?)and move the carriage [5 which is connected by linkage to the frame 6 ofthe compound lever, and thus draw the counterbalanced door assemblyopen. As carriage 3t nears end of its opening travel trip I550 on thecarriage engages stop Sta of bar 3! and shifts the contacts of switch30. To close the doors, turn switch 30 to closing contact and thecarriage l5 is-drawn er I5a, the stop 31b shifting the switch contactsat the end of the carriage travel and stopping the motor. The belt 93runs in the same direction for both movements, but the direction ofmotion of carriage I5 is governed by the engagement of lug lBa withrollers Ilia or I51).

Referring to Fig. handles 32 are provided on the door B, inside and out,for raising and lowering the door assembly by manual control. Also anelectric Yale lock 33 is provided adapted to break the current throughthe motor when the same is locked, the connections being arranged sothat the motor cannot be started until the lock bolt is withdrawn fromthe notch in the locking bar 34 by means of a key inserted from theoutside or by turning a knob on the inside of the door B. Bar 34 issecured to lower end of bracket 3 or may be a continuation of hinge bar3c as shown in Fig. '7. The vertical movement of the door assembly onthe carriage 2a permits the bar '34 to move in its keepers 36a as thedoors are raised and lowered, and when doors are lowered the bolt of theYale'lock may enter the notch and hold the doors locked against movementin any direction. 7

I do not limit my invention to the exact form shown in the drawing forobviously chan es may be made therein within the scope of the claims.

I claim:

1. In combination, a swinging door having a plurality of hingedsections; a pivoted swingable carrier for said door connected to onesection and adapted to move the door from fully closed position intofully opened position; a member movably mounted on the carrier; andmeans operated by the member for yieldably aligning the several sectionsedgewise as they move into fully closed or into fully opened positions.

2. In a combination as set forth in claim 1, said means comprisingtoggle members connecting the end door sections, and a yieldable membertending to flatten the toggle.

3. In a combination as set forth in claim 1, said means comprising atoggle connecting the end door sections; a yieldable member tending toflatten the toggle; and spring pressed guides adjacent the extremelimits of movement of the door coacting with their respective end doorsections.

4. In combination, a swinging door having a plurality of hingedsections; a swingable carrier for said door adapted to move same fromfully closed position into fully opened position; yieldable guidesadjacent the extreme limits of movement of the door; and means operatedby said guides aligning the sections edgewise as the door nears itsfully closed or fully opened position.

5. In a combination as set forth in claim 4, a base unit carrying thecarrier and guides and comprising a track for the carrier shaped toconform with the swing of the carrier; curved portions forming theguides for the said means extending from the ends of the track; a centerbearing plate for the carrier; frame members connecting the track andcurved portions with the bearing plate; and means yieldably connectingthe outer ends of the curved portions to the frame members.

6. In a combination as set forth in claim 4, a base unit carrying thecarrier and guides and comprising an arcuate channel for the carrierhaving its center of curvature concentric with the pivot of swing of thecarrier; reverse curved portions forming the said guides for the saidmeans extending from the ends of the channel; a center bearing plate forthe carrier; frame members connecting the channel and reverse curvedportions with the bearing plate; and means yieldably connecting theouter ends of the reverse curved portions to the frame members.

7. In combination, a swinging door having a plurality of hingedsections; a swingable carrier for said door connected to the middlesection and adapted to move the same from fully closed position intofully opened position; toggle links connecting the side door sectionsfor imparting the movement of one section to the other; yieldable guidesadjacent the extreme limits of movement of the door; and devices on theside door sections engaging said guides for aligning the sectionsedgewise as the door approaches fully closed or fully opened positions.

8. In a combination as set forth in claim 7, means for permitting oneside door section to be opened independently of the other.

9. In a combination as set forth in claim '7, the guide engaging deviceof one side door section being mounted on a frame pivotally supportedupon the middle door section, said frame being connected with itsrespective toggle link; and latch means for locking said side doorsection to the frame whereby when the latch is sprung said section maybe opened without operating the toggle.

10. In a combination as set forth in claim '7, a spring normally urgingseparation of the toggle links.

11. In combination, a swinging door having a plurality of hingedsections; a pivoted swingabie carrier pivotally connected to one sectionand adapted to move said door from its fully ciosed position into itsfully opened position; a member movably mounted on the carrier; andmeans operated by the member for aligning the sections edgewise as theymove into fully closed or into fully opened positions and for flexingthe hinged sections to substantially conform with the swing of thecarrier while moving from one position to the other.

12. In a combination as set forth in claim 11, said means comprisingmeans for causing the hinging movement of one side door to swing theother, means for causing one end door to initially flex the hingedsections at the beginning of the opening or closing movement, and meansfor causing the other end door to re-align the sections at the end ofthe said movement.

13. In a combination as set forth in claim 11, said carrier moving in ahorizontal plane; and said door sections being vertically adjustablewith respect to the carrier; and means for raising and lowering the doorsections as the carrier is swung.

14. In a combination as set forth in claim 11; said carrier moving in ahorizontal plane; and said door sections being horizontally andvertically adjustable with respect to the carrier.

15. In a combination as set forth in claim 11, a bracket radiallyadjustable on the carrier; a hinge rod for said door carried by saidbracket; said door section being axially movably mounted on said rod;and means for moving said door section on the rod.

16. In a combination as set forth in claim 11, said carrier swinging ina horizontal plane; a bracket radially adjustable on the carrier; avertically disposed hinge rod for said door carried by said bracket;said door section being vertically movably mounted on said rod; and acounterbalancing lever connected with said door and pivoted on thecarrier.

1'7. In combination, a swinging door; a horizontally swingable carrierfor swinging the door from fully closed to fully open positions; a leverhaving one end connected with the. door and pivoted on the carrier; aroller at the other end of the lever engaging a cam surface for holdingthe door in elevated position except when the door is in fully closedposition; and a yieldable section in the cam surface engaged by theroller when the door is fully closed for substantially counterbalancingthe weight of the door.

18. In a combination as set forth in claim 17, said yieldable membercomprising a hinged hearing bar adapted to swing upwardly; adjustablemeans for yieldably maintaining the bar in normal position; and meansfor limiting the hinging movement of the bar.

19. In a combination as set forth in claim 17, .a power driven carriage;a link connecting the carriage to the roller end of the lever forswinging the lever in both directions; means interposed between the linkand lever for maintaining the door in elevated position when enteringupon the yieldable section; and a trip for releasing said means.

20. In a combination as set forth in claim 17, a power driven carriage;a link connecting the carriage to the roller end of the lever forswinging the lever in both directions and a bell crank operated by thelink, a traveler carried by the bell crank engagingthe cam surfaceadvance of the roller; a spring pressed pawl normally holding the bellcrank in position to normally maintain the door'in elevated positionwhen entering upon the yieldable section; and a trip' for releasing thepawl when the door is in fully closed position.

21. In combination, swinging door having .a plurality of hingedsections, a swingable carrier for the door connected to the middlesection and adapted to move same from fully closed to fully openposition, a toggle member movably mounted in the carrier; toggle linksrespectively connect-'- ing the side doer sections to the member forimin the c.arrier;-toggle links respectivelyjeonnect 25v ing thesidedoor sections to the member for imparting the movement of one sidesection to the other; a guide on said member slidably receiving onelink; means for normally locking t 1e link in said guide; and means forreleasing the link for permitting its related side door section to beopened independently of the other.

23. In combination, a swinging door having a plurality of hingedsections, .a swingable carrier for the door connected to the middlesection and adapted to move same from fully closed to fully openposition, a toggle member movably mounted in the carrier; toggleflinksrespectively connecting the side door sections to the member forimparting the movement of one side section to the other; a guide on saidmember slidably receiving the end of one link; a trip dog normallylocking the link in said guide; .and manual means jior' releasing the'dog for permitting its related side door section to be openedindependently of the other.

24; In combination, a swinging door having a plurality of hingedsections, a swingable carrier for the door connected to the middlesection and adapted to move same from fully closed to fully openposition, a toggle member movably mounted in the carrier; toggle linksrespectively connecting the side door sections to the member forimparting the movement of one side section to the other; a guide blockon said member slidably receiving the end of one link; aj trip dog onthe said link normally locking the link to the block; a latch lever onthe related door; and a flexible member connecting the latch lever anddog whereby when the latch lever is actuated the related side doorsection may be opened independently of the other. 7 i

' ERNEST L. SHAFFER.

